SalTo: More Than a Fair, a Journey Through Pages
The Salone Internazionale del Libro di Torino (or SalTo, for its friends) is the most important event for the publishing world in Italy. Every year in May, the pavilions of Lingotto Fiere transform into a city made of miles of bookshelves, encounters with authors from all over the world, and thousands of readers hungry for stories. It is a collective ritual that turns Turin into the world capital of books.
Why do we love those queues so much?
For us book lovers, SalTo is a fixed date on the calendar. Of course, it takes infinite patience: the countdown starts with the online ticket rush, leading into the inevitable lines at the turnstiles, book signings, and conference halls.
But why do we keep coming back? Personally, I think the secret is that the Salone is a total sensory experience. It’s the visual impact of a thousand colorful covers, the unmistakable scent of printed paper, the constant hum of voices filling the stands, and the tactile pleasure of flipping through volumes you had never found all together anywhere else. Outside of Lingotto, an atmosphere like this is simply unrepeatable.
A mirror of the world
The Salone is not just about business; it is a mirror of our society. Books often become the tool for explaining the needs of the present. For example, I remember how many publishing houses specializing in cookbooks were born during one of our country’s economic crises. It was the industry’s response to people who needed to save money without giving up the pleasure of good food. The books listen and then respond.
My Salone: From one side of the stand to the other
I have experienced the Salone many times, but each occasion wearing a different “uniform”. My debut at SalTo was entirely behind the scenes. I helped a small publisher set up their stand and, in the following days, pitched their books to the public. Experiencing the event from “this side” of the counter was magical, because it allowed me to meet the curious gazes of readers and catch their smiles when they finally found that title they had been hunting for.
A few years later, my return to Lingotto had a completely different flavor, that of a Master’s student in Paper and Digital Publishing. It was a much more conscious edition, where I started looking at volumes not just as stories, but as complex products, discovering firsthand what it truly means to work within the gears of this industry.
This year, the excitement doubles!
I will be at the Salone in another new role, the most beautiful one: as a bookseller. Our bookstore LiLi Community was selected to participate in the Il Salone in Libreria contest (you can read the dedicated article here). For us, this is already an incredible milestone, a recognition of the work we do every day among the shelves.
Now, we can’t wait to discover new publishers, shake hands with old friends, and head home with heads full of new dreams and projects.
See you in Turin on May 16th and 17th!
